Sticky in Chennai

Of course the idea of a lingam ritual makes most Americans slip into a fit of school boy giggles, but that just says a lot more about us than anything else.

Do any readers know about the actual origins of the buddhist sculptures found in antique shops throughout India? No, I don't mean the factory brass produced ones.  Some of these peices are very well made and are clearly produced from bronze using the same lost wax method used to make Chola Bronzes.  The dealers say they are purchased from Tibetan refugee families in Northern India.  My questions:  Are these peices still being made or is this a dying art?  I understand that in Tibet the Chinese are preventing the preservation and practice of this art.  But do people in Northern India keep producing them?  Are these items purchased fairly, or are some of them stolen?  Is there a place that is the center of this art, like Swamimali is the center for Chola Bronzes?   Any insight someone could send my way would be much appreciated.

I encountered this frog in a hotel room this past weekend.  At first I found him in the corner of the bathroom.  I tried to help him out of the room, but he was uncooperative.  About an hour later I went back to check on him and to my great surprise I found him in the sink.  I was baffled.  How did this frog make his way into the sink?  And, then, shock of shocks, the frog lept from the sink onto the wall. And on the wall he sat. I had never seen a frog stick himself to a wall!   It was quite the sight.  After a few moments of shock, I saw the frog leap once, a great distance, from the wall into the bedroom - and there I could not find him.  Quite an energetic fellow this frog!

A popular image for the deity Shiva is a lingam. What’s a lingam? A male sexual organ. In temples to Shiva one can find many lingams -- symbols of the potency and power of Shiva. (I the past I’ve asked E if we can get a shiva lingam for the house but the idea did not go over well.)

In the Buddhist Art museum of Singapore, a small but wonderfully engaging museum, there are many ancient and fantastic Buddha statues and one really large Shiva lingam. The security guard told Esmerelda that if she placed her hands on the lingam and concentrated hard enough it would put us in the family way in the very near future. The guard also told us that Japanese in particular are great admirers of the power of the Shiva lingam.  Young Japanese couples are known to embrace a large lingam together in an effort to boost their reproductive powers.

Our apologies for neglecting the blog.  We went away this weekend on short notice and have not had a chance to post.  I will let Esmerelda share all the details.  On our flight home this lovely face popped up from the seat in front of us.  She found us very entertaining.